The True Way to Make Merry
by Manwathiel
Summary: The Queen of Mirkwood remembers the past merrymaking and the only way to do it right. Oneshot.


**This is kind of a side story that is mentioned in my first fan fiction, "Lost in My Mind". If you have read it, then you should understand where this is coming from. If not, don't worry about reading it if you don't want to. It isn't essential to this story. With that said, here it goes!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Nothing at all, my precioussss...**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ithilwen sat in her room with an easel in front of her. The Queen of Mirkwood was an excellent painter, a well known fact, but was stuck on what to paint next. She was about ready to drop her paintbrush and give up for the day when the door suddenly burst open. She looked over to the one who had disturbed her and smiled.

"Hello, my son." She said as she patted for him to come sit by her. The young prince did as he was told and ran to sit by his mother, smiling all the way.

"Hi, Atara!" He jumped up onto the bed she sat on and lay on his stomach beside her.

"What brings you here, Legolas?" She asked, ruffling his golden hair. He gave her an annoyed look, but she only chuckled.

"No reason, I just wanted to keep you company." He replied, now trying to straighten out his hair.

"Well, that was very nice of you to think of me." He grinned, letting his pearly white teeth show. The Queen laughed.

"I love you, Atara." He hugged her as best he could while lying down. She returned it with her own tight embrace when the doors swung open once more. The two looked up and smiled at the new person. It was the Crown Prince, Norui. He grinned.

"Atara!" He ran to his mother's side. No matter how old the two princes got, they seemed like they would always remain children, she thought. She hugged them both tight to her.

"Now, here are my two boys. Just what I needed." The two laughed and cuddled up against her.

"Yes, you don't need Melyanna or Lothron around, do you? So that means we can ship them to the Grey Mountains, right?" Ithilwen laughed.

"No, Norui, you cannot ship them there. At least, not without your Ada's permission." She gave them a cheeky grin. They looked at each other and grinned, then ran out of the room and down the hall. She laughed. "Oh, those boys."

Then, inspiration hit her and she smiled. Seeing her youngest son had brought back a memory from their last celebration of the departing of spring and arrival of summer. Recollecting her thoughts from that day, she began to paint.

-------------------

"_Legolas! Get back here!" The Elvenking roared. _

"_Never!" Legolas objected. He was currently leading his father on a wild goose chase throughout the many halls of the palace, half naked with only his leggings on. He turned the corner, nearly knocking over a maid, and continued charging the hall. All the Elvenking, Thranduil, was trying to do was get Legolas to change into some proper clothing before the merrymaking. The only thing the prince would agree to was his silver under tunic and brown, almost black, leggings, but that was not going to cut it. Not this time, for Thranduil had a back-up plan. _

_Legolas flew up a flight of stairs, but his face fell as he saw his older brother was there waiting for him with open arms and a smirk on his face. He tried to skid to a halt, but was moving too fast and slid right into his arms. Legolas tried to wriggle out of his older brother's grip, but failed. _

_Thranduil soon came huffing up the stairs to find Legolas pinned down on the floor, his brother holding his arms against his back. He looked ready to kill._

"_Thank you, Norui, for your help. I think I can take it from here." Norui nodded._

"_My pleasure, Ada." He grinned at Legolas as Thranduil hoisted his son over his shoulder. The Crown Prince then made his way down the hall and into his room to prepare for the celebration. _

_Legolas remained silent throughout the way back to his room where he would be forced to change into his good robes. He scowled. He hated getting dressed up in front of people. 'But I will get dressed up this time.' He thought. 'Oh yes, _**very**_ dressed up.' Thranduil entered his son's chambers and closed the door behind then finally dropped his son. _

"_Now, Legolas, you will get changed into those robes that are set out for you and you will not be attending the feast until you do so. Is that understood?" The King ordered. Legolas merely hung his head. _

"_Yes, Ada, I understand." _

"_Good. Now, get ready!" He quickly left and slammed the door behind him. Legolas looked up and smirked. 'This shall be a night to remember.' He thought. The prince then took from inside his large closet his handmade bow and quiver and turned to the old oak tree outside of his window. _

"_Great Oak, may I have permission to shoot this one arrow into your trunk? I promise to heal your wound after my task is complete." He asked politely to the tree, as he was a Wood-Elf and could easily communicate with the mighty plant. He could hear the tree laugh as the wind brushed through it's leaves._

"_Of course you may, prince. Just as long as you keep your promise." It responded. Legolas smiled._

"_Thank you, Oak. I will keep my promise to you." Legolas then turned to grab a rope off of his dresser and tied it to an arrow. He held onto one end of the rope as he shot it at the top of the tree. He could hear a grunt of discomfort from the oak. "I am sorry, friend. I hope it did not harm you too much."_

"_Of course not, Greenleaf. I do not want to spoil your fun." Legolas then slipped the rope through his bow and tied the other end of the rope to a railing on the balcony. Holding onto his bow, he slid down the rope until he came to the tree and let go._

"_Once again, thank you, Oak." The tree brushed its leaves up against his face and he laughed. "You will always be my friend, Great Oak." _

_Legolas made his way down the branches and came to a garden full of white, pink and blue flowers. He bent down and gently picked a bundle of the blue flowers and put them in his quiver. He climbed back up the tree and tugged at the arrow until it came free of the Oak's trunk. _

"_Now, I will fulfill my promise." He lightly touched the hole in which the arrow was embedded and began to mend the wound he had caused, though he contained little magic to do so._

"_Do not wear yourself out now, prince. We don't want you passing out in there!" _

"_I will do a better job after the feast is over!" With that, Legolas hopped from the tree and began the tiring climb up the palace wall, using the rope like a mountain climber would. The Oak chuckled to himself._

"_Silly Elf." He then fell into a deep slumber._

_Legolas hopped over the window sill into his room and set the flowers in a vase of water. 'Now, step two.' He thought. The prince creaked open the door and searched for any signs of his family. He found none. Stealthily, he crept down the halls until he came to his oldest sister's room. Lothron was her name. _

_He pressed his ear to the door. Finding no sounds from within, he pushed open the door. No one was in there, as he had guessed. He went in silently and came to her closet. He rummaged through the many colored dresses until he came to one he thought would do the job right. It was a pale pink with a purple cloak. He snatched it off of the hanger and slung it over his shoulder. He grabbed a pair of baby blue slippers from the bottom of the closet. He stroked his chin in thought. The prince then spotted a box on the dresser. He crept towards it and opened it. Blush, lipstick and all kinds of other make up was organized within it. He shoved many colors of the stuff in his pocket and then closed the box. He started to leave the room, but something caught his eye. It was a white wicker basket with a lavender ribbon on it. Snatching it, he made his way out of the room, leaving no evidence that he had been there, besides the missing items. _

-------------

Ithilwen laughed out loud as she continued to paint. Even though she had only done the outlines, memories came flooding back to her. It brought a tear of joy to her eye as she dipped her brush in a golden color.

-------------

_Thranduil stood by the doors of the feasting halls, greeting his people. One lord and his lady came up to speak to him._

"_Greetings, my lord Thranduil." The lord said, bowing._

"_Mae govannen, Maldor and Aeariel. It is good to see you here." Thranduil said to the couple. _

"_We wouldn't dare miss one of your feasts, Lord Thranduil. I say they are the best in all of Middle-Earth!" Maldor, the lord, complimented him._

"_Thank you, Maldor. You are too kind." _

"_I, for one, am amazed at how well you children behave! It is as if they aren't even there sometimes!" Aeariel said. _

"_Hannon le, Aeariel. But you obviously don't see them much around the palace. They can be a real handful." _

_At that moment, his three other children, Norui, Lothron and Melyanna, decided to burst through them._

"_You are dead! I swear I shall kill you once I get my hands on you!" Norui shouted after his sisters. The two girls cut between their father and the couple he was talking with. Thranduil shook his head._

"_See what I mean?" He laughed. Maldor smiled. Then Norui cut through the three, but was caught by the back of his collar by Thranduil. Norui glared at him, but then lightened up once he saw who it was._

"_Father, forgive me. It is just that they were insulting Glithiel and me." He explained. Thranduil shook his head._

"_Is chasing them going to make any difference?" _

"_Well, no, but I was infuriated at the time and wanted to stand up for Glithiel."_

"_I am sure you have embarrassed her now though." Thranduil said, nodding to the she-elf they spoke of. She was busy folding her napkin into different shapes and creatures. Norui grinned._

"_She doesn't seem to be embarrassed." Exasperated, Thranduil sighed. _

"_Fine, just go sit down with her." With that, he dropped his son and Norui sped off to sit with his lady friend. The couple chuckled._

"_I can see that they can be a handful. But they are adorable!" Aeariel said. _

"_Yes, now they are, but once my youngest gets here, it will be mass chaos." They laughed._

"_We look forward to it. Legolas always lightens the evening." More people began to come in and so the couple left to get out of Thranduil's way. _

_Soon, all of the seats at the tables had been taken by guests. Thranduil and his wife, Ithilwen, sat at a separate table in front of their people. Lothron and Melyanna sat beside their mother, while Norui sat beside his father with Glithiel at his side. Legolas had not shown up yet. Thranduil put his head in his hands. _

"_Why must he do this? What is so hard about getting changed and coming to dinner?" Thranduil asked no one in particular. _

"_Do not worry, dear, Legolas will show up. He is not one to miss the Summer Merrymaking." She rubbed her husband's back comfortingly. Thranduil sat up and smiled, then leaned in to kiss her, but Norui pulled him back._

"_Ada, no kissing! We don't want to see it!" The Elvenking chuckled._

"_But you and Glithiel don't seem to have a problem kissing." Norui and Glithiel both blushed and remained silent. The other four just laughed. Then, the doors swung open. The royal family and Glithiel looked up to see who it was. Their jaws dropped._

_A maiden stood in the doorway. She was dressed in a pale pink dress that dragged behind on the floor with a purple cloak. A lavender ribbon tied a braid on the back of her head. She wore baby blue slippers and carried a white basket with blue flowers in it. Different shades of pinks were painted on her face with blush, lipstick and other make up. The guests froze at the sight of the she-elf. She looked around at everyone and giggled in a very high pitched voice._

"_Hello, everyone! Isn't it just a lovely night?" She giggled once more and proceeded to skip down the aisle. She took a seat at the front of the table, closest to the royal family. She looked up at them, and waved._

_All Thranduil saw was red. He knew who this she-elf was and his temper was flaring. He was set to kill. Ithilwen put her hand on her husband's._

"_Now, now, dear, don't do something you think you will regret later on. He is just having a bit of fun." _

"_Fun!? You call that fun!? That is called embarrassment and disobedience!"_

"_What do expect from him? It is his nature to do these kinds of things. He cannot help himself." Thranduil took a deep breath. _

"_Fine. But he will be punished later on." _

_And so, the celebration continued on as it would normally. Guests filled their plates to their liking and everyone was content. Of course, there were some younger elves who were completely oblivious to the entrance of the she-elf that looked remarkably like the youngest prince of Mirkwood. One, called Beriothien, approached her._

"_Milady, would you care to join me in a walk in the gardens?" She looked up from her plate and to the prince, Norui. He just laughed._

"_Well, I guess there isn't any harm in it." She stood up and Beriothien took her arm and led her outside. Norui slipped away and followed silently behind them._

_The elf led her through the many pathways in the garden. The walls were littered with white roses and red tulips. Fireflies flitted everywhere, giving off their own natural glow to light the way. _

_The two sat down at a bench and watched the moths fly around in silence. After a few moments, Beriothien spoke up._

"_Milady, what is your name?"_

"_Um, it is Raina." She replied, hesitantly. Norui watched behind a hedge, stifling a laugh._

"_That is a beautiful name. Raina." He said. "Raina, I must tell you something. Since the moment I laid eyes on your beautiful face, I admired you." Raina scooted away slightly, uncomfortable. He continued. "Raina, I love you. You are the definition of beauty." She went pale._

"_Well, that is nice of you, but-" She was cut off._

"_No, let me finish. Raina, I must ask a favor of you." He knelt down in front of the she-elf and took her hands in his. "Raina, please, would you bear my child?" He blushed and her jaw dropped. 'Alright, this has gone far enough!' She thought. Raina then stood up and punched Beriothien square in the jaw. _

"_How dare you!" All feminine tone in her voice was gone and was replaced with the voice of the youngest prince, Legolas. Beriothien gaped. _

"_Prince Legolas?! B-but, you are female!" Legolas glared._

"_I am far from female, you fool!" He smeared the make up off of his face and took out the ribbon in his hair. Beriothien then realized it was truly Legolas._

"_Please, prince Legolas! Forgive me! I did not realize it was you!"_

"_How can you not recognize your own prince?!" He shouted at him. Their argument was interrupted by a burst in laughter. They turned to where the sound had come from and found Norui laughing hysterically on the ground._

"_That was good, Legolas! Great!" He said between laughs. "You are such a convincing girl!" Legolas glared daggers at his older brother._

"_Oh, I am going to kill you, Norui!" Legolas then leapt away from Beriothien and charged for his brother. Norui sprang up and dashed for the palace, still laughing wildly. Beriothien still knelt before the bench, eyes wide._

_Norui burst in through the doors of the feasting hall. His family and the guests all turned to him with questioning looks on their faces. Then they heard wild calling and shouting. The lady that had come in late charged into the hall, clearly angry._

"_Norui! Come back here and face me!" Her voice was now that of the prince's, causing all of the guests to laugh uncontrollably. Norui leapt up onto one of the tables and Legolas followed. The two ran down the length of it, throwing various foods and drinks in the peoples' faces, but they didn't seem to mind. _

_Legolas picked up a bowl of mashed potatoes and threw it at the back of Norui's head. It hit dead on and stuck to his brown hair, causing him to do a face plant into a platter of vegetables. The young prince leapt onto his brother's back and dug his face deeper into some dipping sauce. Norui kicked him in the stomach, making him get up, and dumped a bowl of gravy onto Legolas's golden head. The screaming and shouting had stopped and had turned into laughter. Before everyone knew it, all of the people had joined in the fight. No one was left untouched by food. The floors were flooded with wines and juices and the walls were caked with splattered peas and beans. All were in a playful uproar, tossing food at their loved ones and friends. _

_Thranduil was the only one who still sat at their seat, his head rested in his hands yet again. Ithilwen had even gone to join in the fun. _

"_Why? Why me?" He said aloud as a turkey leg hit him in the head. He looked up to see who threw it and saw that it was Legolas, a cheeky grin plastered on his face. After a moment, Thranduil sighed and smiled. 'But what would I do without them?' He stood and hopped over the table, a bowl of pasta in his hand. Legolas continued to grin. The King then threw the bowl and hit his son in the face. The prince brushed it away and smiled, then ran out to join in the fight again, followed shortly by his father._

_Now _**this**_ is truly merrymaking._

-------------

Ithilwen put down her paintbrush and smiled.

"Finished." She said. The door opened and she beamed at the visitor. It was her husband, Thranduil.

"Are you ready?" He asked her. She nodded, and then motioned for him to come sit. He did so and studied her painting. He smiled. "What a beautiful day that was, melamin." Ithilwen nodded again.

"Indeed it was." She agreed. Thranduil stood.

"Come, it is time for your ride." He pulled her up and planted a lingering kiss on her lips. After they pulled away, they made their way out of the room and down the hall, hand in hand.

The words '_The True Way to Make Merry_' was written at the bottom.

That was the last painting she ever made.

Fin.

**XXXXXXXXXXXX**

**There you go! I hope you liked it. I certainly enjoyed writing it! Thanks for reading!**

**Until Next Time,**

**Manwathiel**


End file.
